Canute (The Kindred Series)

​An immortal soldier, tested in the fires of war…

In the aftermath of the attack on his brother and his family, Canute is coaxed into joining forces with another vampire family in the hopes of ending a long feud between two rivaling clans vying for control.

A false pretense…

Under the guise of a Kindred bond, Canute finds himself used as a pawn in some war he wants no part of. Angry, confused, and unable to trust himself, he loses his already tenuous control and becomes berserker, losing himself into the night.

Fighting with fear…

When Canute wakes up, he finds himself in the presence of a young man named Haru, who ends up being his true Kindred. Afraid that he’s still beguiled and unable to fully trust so soon after an immense betrayal, Canute has to fight past his fears and his weaknesses to accept his Kindred. Between immense betrayal and a war where no one can trust their judgment, can he learn to trust—and love—again?-=-=-=-=-CANUTE , the second book in the Kindred Series, is an M/M vampire romance with no cheating, no cliffhangers, and a happily-ever-after. Expect magic, a little angst, and just the tiniest bit of darkness!

Excerpt

​Canute wondered how a young man could be so openly giving, so openly trusting, in this cruel, cruel world that they both lived in. He said he was a kami, so he had to know that there were evils lurking around every corner, right?

Still, he wasn’t about to turn down a drink. It was probably in part due to his interest in Haru, which was strong enough that Canute could consciously realize it, and another part due to his thirst. Desperate times called for desperate measures. And on the other hand, Canute wanted to feel that warmth and sunniness for himself.

Canute gingerly took a hold of Haru’s wrist, and he rubbed his thumb slowly across the middle, just firm enough to figure out where exactly the vein was. He lifted Haru’s arm up until it was mere inches away from his lips.

“Are you sure?” Canute asked.

Haru nodded. “It’s not going to hurt, right?”

Canute shrugged. He probably wasn’t being reassuring, but he didn’t know if Haru was particularly sensitive, or if he was somehow the type of creature who weakened easily. “It shouldn’t.”

Haru looked up at Canute, then back down at his wrist. He did this a couple of times, enough so that Canute realized that Haru was probably feeling a little conflicted.

“If you don’t want to, I can always just hunt outside,” Canute said, trying to reassure Haru. “I won’t hurt a human, if you’re worried about them. But a willing donor will always beat an unwilling victim.”

There was a flicker of uncertainty that Canute saw in those eyes, but it was enough for Canute to realize that toying with this young kami was perhaps too much for Haru. He’d gone from embarrassed and red in the face, to scared and nervous in the span of minutes.

Haru looked up at Canute, then back down at his wrist. Back up at his face, and then down at his wrist. This happened a number of times more, before the kami finally took a deep breath.

“Please, if it’ll help you, then you should have some,” Haru said. “Immodesty is a small price to pay for helping someone in need. Besides, this is for your health. It’s not like we’re doing anything bad.”

Canute couldn’t contain his surprise. He raised an eyebrow at Haru and nodded, the thought crossing his mind that he probably didn’t need to tease the younger man so much.

Canute yanked the young kami forward until Haru was only about a foot away from his body, and then he lifted the man’s wrist to his lips. He felt his fangs ache. His inner demon already wanted out. The gentle thrum of a pulse was so close, it would have been so easy to just take it…

The vampire stilled his body, taking a deep breath before baring his fangs. There was no better way to do this than just quickly—otherwise he would be going hungry for maybe a couple hours more, at best, and maybe even weeks at worst.

Canute plunged his fangs right into that vein, bursting with vitality and life and letting the taste, the essence, flow right into his lips. It made him shiver with both arousal and need.

Gods, Haru tasted like the sun. He tasted like warmth, and heat, and all the things that Canute didn’t know he could still feel. Haru’s blood was sweet and gentle, much like the man himself, and Canute knew he had to keep himself from drinking too much. Even though Haru was immortal, it wasn’t as though he was a fount of blood. Canute had to pace himself, both for his sake as well as Haru’s.

He might have been a monster, but he wasn’t that much of a monster.

One sip, and then another led to a groan coming out of his lips, and it preceded Haru’s own unceremonious squeak. Canute thought it was cute, much like the rest of Haru’s actions and his demeanor, and with every slow, but light sip he partook of the kami’s blood, he felt strength return to his body. Strong enough to feel, in full effect, how Haru made his cock rise in arousal, and things that once lay dormant inside him to come out, brimming with life.

When he looked up into Haru’s face, the expression that met his was flushed. Haru was biting down on the corner of his lower lip, and the effect was as immediate as it was strong. Canute wanted nothing more than to slide right into the kami’s body right there, and claim him.

It felt like something was clicking into place, and Canute needed to push it aside. If he did this, he would bring so much untold danger to these kind souls. No, he couldn’t think about the possibility…

The possibility that maybe, just maybe, this young kami was his actual Kindred.

Was this the universe’s way of righting a wrong, of giving him back his hope?

About the Author

Frey Ortega writes erotic romance, primarily of the gay variety. He lives in what a friend affectionately calls “the south-easternmost part of Spain,” which is an archipelago called the Philippines. He’s a graduate of the Royal, Pontifical, and Catholic University in Manila, with a Bachelors of Science degree in Psychology. Primarily, he works as a writer, a novelist, sometimes a video game journalist, and overall a homebody who spends way too much time on the internet.

He loves writing about people, especially people of all different shapes, sizes and backgrounds, falling in love. You might also find him playing video games from time to time! His favorite ones are MMORPGs, and role-playing games in general (and not just the ones in the bedroom.)

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A.M. Halford

Mondays: Free post days where I post about anything I feel like talking about.Wednesdays: WIP Wednesdays where I post articles about my current works in progress and share a small snippet from one of them.Fridays: Author Spotlights. I share an author and spotlight their work!